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Home Exercise Equipment
| Fitness Quest Edge 500 Manual Treadmill |
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Treadmills are on review in this section. We have researched price, availability, warrantees, etc. to save you time. Each model is affordable for home use. We provide the comments of many treadmill owners for your consideration. Finally, we suggest the best merchant to buy from in each case.
Did you know that more than 37 million people use a treadmill? Treadmills are great because they mimic an exercise that is both familiar and comfortable. After all, most of us know how to walk or run! Using a treadmill in a gym is one thing, but buying one for your home is a serious matter. Treadmills cost a good deal of money, so consider your budget. But, for lasting value, buy the highest quality machine you can afford. Here's what you need to know about buying a treadmill.
For a decent treadmill, plan on spending at least $1,000 and, for a better than decent treadmill, between $1500 to $3000. There are some so-so models that fall under that price range but, if you buy a cheap treadmill, that's exactly what you're going to get. Choosing the right treadmill will depend on: 1) how much money you have, 2) any extras you want (programming, heart rate monitor, etc.), 3) what kind of motor you want and 4) how much space you have in your house.
Motor Control
The first thing to consider with your treadmill is the motor. Most treadmills have two
motors; one to drive the belt and the other to raise and lower the bed for inclines. Make
sure the belt motor is a continuous duty motor with at least 1.5 horsepower. More
horsepower isn't always better, particularly if it's not continuous duty, so don't be
fooled by a salesperson who's talking about a 'maximum power' or 'treadmill duty' motor.
You want continuous duty!
Other things to look for include: belt size - at least 48" long and 16" wide; speed - if you plan on running, get a treadmill that goes up to 10 mph; incline - get a treadmill with an incline that goes up to 10%; cushioning - the running bed should absorb shock and the belt shouldn't move around with every foot-strike; stability - the treadmill shouldn't shake when you run or walk on it and the frame should remain stable; control panel - should be within easy reach and be simple to use.
Before you buy, decide what types of things you want from your treadmill: Do you want
running or walking programs included? Heart rate monitor? The ability to hook your
treadmill up to a website such as ifit.com for new workouts? Do you need a treadmill that
folds (often more expensive) or do you have enough space to house a treadmill full-time?
How easy is the treadmill to maintain? Once you figure out what you want and need, it's
time to hit the sporting goods store for a test drive.
The most important thing to do before buying a treadmill is to try it out. Make a list of treadmills and call sporting goods stores to see if they're available locally. Spend at least 10 minutes on each treadmill. Make sure it's quiet and that it doesn't shake, even when running. While you're there, see where the drink holder is. Is there a place to put your walkman? Can you add a book rack?
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More Info on treadmills
Summary
Aerobic exercise is the heart of most of our fitness regimes. It is perhaps the most
important workout you'll do, exercising the heart, lungs and cardiovascular system. While
many people are actually getting aerobic exercise while doing chores (such as
gardening, laundry, vacuuming or washing the car) or having fun playing (skating, tennis,
hang gliding or sofa surfing), there are far more who are fooling themselves into thinking
these activities are actually aerobic.
The only way to know is to monitor your heart rate while
doing the activity and see whether you are really reaching your target zone or not. Also,
the exercise must be sustained for at least 20 minutes of continuous elevated
heart rate to qualify for a good aerobic workout.
• Heart Rate Monitors are excellent for monitoring your heart
rate while exercising, since stopping the exercise to take your pulse is inconvenient and
ineffective and your pulse will typically not be the same once you've stopped.
• Treadmills
have always been a solid way to get good, honest aerobic exercise, since you are
carrying your own body weight and can set your own pace easily.
Treadmills - The Cardoivascular Exercise Machine!
Walking is a natural process and, therefore, a natural form of exercise recommended for people of all ages. It is the basic form of aerobic exercising. Cardiovascular exercise increases your breathing and heart rate and walking is the easiest way to do it. You need to walk at least 20 minutes in order to benefit from this aerobic exercise and using a treadmill is an efficient way to do this. A 20 plus-minute walk triggers your fat cells to release fat and fat burning starts.
On a good treadmill you will be able to walk comfortably in the secured environment of your home and gain all the benefits of efficient cardiovascular exercising.
Standard Requirements
The Treadmill - Best for Aerobic Exercise!
Scientific study has revealed the treadmill is by far the best aerobic exercise tool for energy expenditure. A recent study ( Energy Expenditure with Indoor Exercise Machines, JAMA 275, 1424-1427, 2001) showed that the treadmill burned more efficiently and at a greater rate than other popular aerobic exercise machines.
Here's what the study indicated...
The hands down winner was the treadmill. One hour of easy intensity exercise burned 580 calories while heavy intensity burned 850 calories.
Tied for runner up in second place for the best aeroic exercise machine is the stairclimber. One hour of easy intensity exercise burned 540 calories while heavy intensity burned 700 calories.
Tied with the stairclimber as the second best aerobic exercise machine is the rowing ergometer. One hour of easy intensity exercise burned 540 calories while heavy intensity exercise burned 700 calories.
If this study indicated a BIG loser among exercise machines, it was the stationary bike. One hour of heavy intensity burns 500 calories -- 350 less than our first ranked treadmill. And an hour of easy intensity exercise? A meager 370 calories.
The bottom line is quite simple...
If you want to maximize the effectiveness of the time you spend doing aerobic exercise, you need to be using a treadmill. Treadmills effectively target and work several large muscle groups in a effective fashion. Because they are motorized, it's much easier to maintain exercise at a specific intensity -- since you can't subconsciously slow down throughout the exercise.